Never Stop Living
by ercarterfan
Summary: Carter returns from Africa once again single. Abby and Luka are expecting a baby. You can never stop living, advice given to an old friend but is it advice that he's willing to take himself.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter One: Africa

The hot winds stirred the sands. Small bits, tiny grains grated into my eyes. The sounds in the background were the same ones that had filled the silence, shattering the peace. A whistle, oh ever so quiet at first slowly, steadily getting louder until bang, earth shaking beneath your feet as the mortars rained down around you. Panic slowly gets a grip on your for the next sound you here is the sound of yet another weapon going off.

You know that those bullets buzzing over your head are real. You have treated those wounds before. Seeing many young lives cut short from the brass ripping through flesh. You know those could do the same to your own. Yet this was the job volunteered to do, no one forcing to be in this semi-forgotten land. You came because you wanted to make a difference no matter how big or small it was. It was time to make that stance. Back home that never seemed to be there and day to day became the mundane.

The sun has started to set. While you know your reasons sometimes you have to wonder if there wasn't more to things than what you let even yourself to believe. Here in this place I was waiting, waiting for the solitude that would afford the luxury of time to sort out my ever changing world. That which had been nearly stabilized by my grandparents, they were my rock always there as my own parents always seemed to be jet setting off somewhere business was usually the excuse.

30 years and now to a point in my life where I know I shouldn't blame my parents and to a point I didn't. That which I learned about relationships I learned from watching there be very little interaction between anyone. Could and distant that's how the world appeared. I was here overseas now running from a past relationship because I didn't want to or rather didn't know how to repair it.

Somehow for some reason I thought that in coming here I would find the peace to deal with it all, perhaps find the answer on how to do that. Here I was definitely needed. For my skills and knowledge were in short supply and health care was something the people here needed and rarely attained. I wanted to fix that and there had to be some what that I could fix this.

The wind continued to blow, the sky deep shades of purple nearly black. The twilight illuminated every few minutes as the silence was shattered by an exploding mortar bright as the sun in the sky. I kept my head low to the ground. The first time my body shook and I was scared to death I was going to die. This was not something that I had become accustomed to but had become less nerve wracking, still scared that I might die. That fear will never go away no matter how many times I found this intense fighting. Chicago that was home, Africa was the escape. The ground shook under me once again. Abby… Chicago… past regrets, those were the last thoughts in my mind.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: I wrote this or rather started it while I was at BCT/AIT in my down time since I couldn't use the internet at the time. Please take a moment to read and review when you get done let me know if you like it or not. Imput is always needed and apprecitated so that I know what I am doing right or wrong. Also I have only seen a few episodes of Season 13 cause I haven't been able to watch TV so if something doesn't match up.. hey it's fiction.

Chapter 2: Chicago

"Abby!"

Abby sighed hearing her name screeched. "I'm on my break." Simple response, yet she knew it wasn't going to pacify anyone.

"Your John Doe in three is trying to circle the drain."

"Ah hell," Abby said as she pulled herself from where she had been sitting down.

"Sorry Abby, but we are short handed again today."

"When aren't we short handed?" Abby slowly waddled toward her patient.

"Going to be worse here soon, what you have another eight weeks?"

Abby walked into the room where her patient was. "I stopped counting." She snapped on her gloves. "Amp of epi, get me the crash cart." Smooth as silk. "Luka was driving me crazy." Abby's eyes were on the patient, watching to see if she could stop her patients decent.

"Ah, he is just excited."

"Sam." Abby paused for a brief second to make eye contact with the nurse. "He's beyond excited. Crawling ever closer to going over the line with each breath he takes." Abby switched gears once more, "charge to three hundred." She took the paddles moving closer, "clear." Pause to make sure before she shocked her patient. Her thoughts were no longer on Luka and the baby. "Another amp of epi and charge to three sixty," Abby continued on with the motions of trying to save her patient.

Several shocks and epis later her patients heart was beating again, barely but it was beating. She packed him up and found him a nice warm bed on the ICU floor.

"I'm going to go eat." She said looking quickly around the ER where all seemed calm. But that calm could be rather deceiving masking the onslaught that usually followed.

Abby pulled on her coat. The air outside on the chilly side due to a storm making it's way through Chicago. She made her way over towards the coffee stand to get something hot to drink while on her break. Coffee and Danish had been calling her since her first break attempt. She found a place to sit that was out of the wind. The alley way where Dr. Ross and Dr. Greene would play basketball several years ago, so much had changed since she'd moved down to the ER first as a med student, then nurse and now doctor. Many had come and gone. Dr. Ross moving to Seattle, then Dr. Greene and Dr. Gallant had both died. Dr. Greene passed away due to brain cancer, Dr. Gallant had been a soldier and died in Iraq when insurgents attacked his convoy. Even a war overseas had managed to touch her life. And then floating across her mind that hadn't been there in months she found herself thinking about John Carter. A stranger almost to her now for Abby hadn't heard from John in nearly two years and it seemed an odd time for him to find his way into her mind.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3 – England

"John," Barbara gave her brother a stern yet loving glace. "You can't stay hidden here forever." Her long slender arms were crossed over her chest.

"I'm not hiding from anyone." Carter answered. "What are you trying to get rid of me?"

Barbara shook her head, a soft laugh escaped from her. "No Scooter, I'm not. You are always welcome here. I just thought that with as hard as it was to get you to leave Chicago that you'd be wanting to return home."

"Chicago isn't home." Carter replied his arms now crossed over his chest. His stubborn side was coming out. "There's nothing in Chicago for me and you know that."

"Perhaps Paris, I'm…"

"Kem and I are over. There's no salvaging our marriage or that relationship. We are better for each other this way." John tried his best to believe what he was saying but even for him it wasn't easy.

Africa, Sudan, neither of those two places were they together. John had traveled to Darfur himself, Kem choosing to stay in Paris both times. They had started to drift apart shortly after their rather hasty wedding and neither of them recovering from Joshua's premature death. John wanted them to return to the land of the living. Kem had been unable to let go of the pain of their loss. The baby that brought them together in his death it tore them completely apart in the end.

"You could practice medicine in Chicago John. You love your job, I know that you do. There's no reason that you should let the accident stop you."

"Barb please, I appreciate you trying to cheer me up, motivate me in your own special way but no." John was trying to be patient with her. "I'm not going to Chicago."

"Dr. Weaver sent you this." Barb said. "I called her a couple of weeks ago." She extended her hand now. A stamped envelope was there. "I knew that I needed to go behind your back."

"I wish you hadn't done that." John said snapping the envelope from his sister's extended hand. There was a look of distain upon his face, clearing showing now the frustration that to her.

"Yes dear, but I did it for your own good." She ignored his look and turned to talk out of the room. "But I knew you would never do it yourself."

John knew she was right. He failed in his marriage, getting hurt in Africa had knocked his confidence down a notch or two. A job offer from Kerry Weaver, John wasn't sure if that would be enough to turn things around. He hadn't been the same since the mortar had exploded so close to where he'd been laying on the ground that night. The scars were still visible and the limp now that would never go away. His knee had been shattered and the tibia as well. A piece of bone blown from his leg leaving it deformed and Carter with a visible limp but he could only hope that his friends would be able to look past it.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4:

"Did you hear the news?"

"No, I didn't what news?"

"Dr. Carter, Dr. Weaver hired him back on as an attending again."

Abby heard those words and had to stop nearly dead in her tracks as she had been traveling down the hallway. Surely she had to have heard them wrong, they couldn't have been talking about John Carter.

"I didn't even know he was back in Chicago." Both of the gossiping nurses now looked at Abby, "did you know?"

Abby shook her head now. "No, I didn't know." That was the truth. This was the first that she had heard of it.

"Wonder what brought him and Kem back to the States. Carter told me before they left that she hated being in Chicago."

Abby cringed when she heard that woman's name. She couldn't help it. She shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know but I'm sure that Carter brought his wife." She swallowed hard although she was with Luka, she didn't know why. She was happy with Luka and they were expecting a baby. After all that she shouldn't care about Carter, she why all of the sudden did she have that pang of jealousy? Abby wasn't the jealous kind was she? No, she wasn't, it wasn't jealousy, she was just protective of Carter. Abby always would be that way towards him because of everything that they had been through. Yet how ironic it was that she had been dating Luka and broke it off for Carter and when she and Carter couldn't hold it together she ended up back with Luka. Perhaps a comfort zone or just meant to be. Carter had married Kem and he was happy with her. Abby was happy with Luka and she was anticipating nervously the birth of her son or daughter. She wouldn't trade that for the world. She moved to retrieve a chart from the rack when something told her to look up.

There was John Carter making his way through those double glass sliding doors of the ambulance bay. But there was something different with his stance. He didn't seem to be carrying himself the same. Maybe it was just the distance but when the entire ER grew silent Abby knew that there was something wrong with Carter. The silence gave everything away. Abby stayed where she was watching him cross the room.

He really was back. Walking into the ER once again and Abby watched Haleh walk up and hug Carter. While she couldn't make out what she was saying to him but she did see the small smile cross his face.

In seeing that small smile she couldn't help but softly smile herself. It was a good sight for her eyes. Abby's eyes then for a brief two seconds caught Carter's eyes and she felt her cheeks redden. She moved from behind the desk over to where he was standing. Abby smiled for him a little more.

"Welcome back Carter." Abby said in a soft voice. "It's good to see you back. We've all missed you." She embraced him in a soft hug it was the least that she could do, but what was a small hug turned into a little more. "We are all glad to see you here."


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5:

It was cold as Carter fixed his tie and straightened his shirt. He was nervous about going back to work at County. While Carter loved medicine he'd spent several months at his sister's flat in London trying to recover from his injuries. Medicine after Africa hadn't been a high priority. He really had contemplated not going back and perhaps taking his place at the foundation was again. He could easily live off his inheritance comfortably until he died.

One last look at himself making sure he looked as good as he could. After all this was a new start for him again. County needed docs and deep down running through his veins was his loved of medicine. He hadn't worn a white coat in a long time let alone done shift work or even chart because of HMO and insurance regulations. Carter's diagnostic skills were top notch or used to be top notch. Today he was a bundle of nerves. Something had butterflies in the seasoned doctor's stomach.

He pulled on his long white lab coat glancing in the mirror once again. He brought his hand up to touch the embroidery, blue letters that spelled out John Carter, MD. Hopefully in a place where he had many memories and friends would still be warm and welcoming. He didn't know who all would even still be there. Residents came and go and surely things had changed.

The drive across town was shorter than he remembered. A small apartment was once again his humble abode. He parked his jeep in the garage before straightening himself once again feeling the nerves. His steps not only felt heavy but seemed to take more energy today. Across the parking garage he crossed and into the elevator where he could feel a small tightness forming in his chest as he waited to be deposited on the ground floor. The sound of the elevator reaching its destination before they slid open caused Carter to stand up straighter and pull on his tie, his bag slung over his shoulder. Carter key's jingled in his pocket. Seeing those double doors of the ER entrance brought back a flood of memories none of them horrible but there was just a tinge of sorrow that managed to creep into him.

Carter knew he needed to shake off the nervous feeling. He hadn't felt like this since 1994 when he first came to County in a short white lab coat. He softly smiled as the memory of that day crossed his mind. A soft sigh managed to escape now as he stood up straight and entered the ER. As he looked around the ER he hoped to catch a few familiar faces and as he did seeing those seemed to erase some of his nerves.

"Oh my god, the rumor is true, welcome back Dr. Carter." Haleh one of Carter's favorite nurses walked up and hugged him. "Good to have you back again. We've missed you."

Carter smiled for her, that boyish grin made his eyes nearly dance. "Ah I couldn't stay away, this place is home."

"Good to hear." She said smiling as she turned to walk away.

Carter just nodded. He eyes went down to the floor only coming up in response to a familiar voice.

"Welcome back Carter. It's good to see you." The voice was as soft as he brought his eyes up to see a very pregnant Abby standing there in front of him. That had been her that he had caught a glimpse of while he hugged Haleh. It didn't take him but another moment to recover from the shock.

"Hey it's good to see you too." Carter said as he returned her soft hug. "You look great Abby." Awkward just a little after the two years they had spent apart seeing her happy was a treat.

"Thanks John." Abby had long given up on calling him just Carter. "What brings you back to Chicago?"

"Long story," simple answer that he hoped appeased her. "I'm sure that your busy, this place is always busy."

Abby looked up at him and you could see on her face that she really wanted to say more.

"R3 like you, I'm sure your resident intern and other med students are driving you crazy." Carter jumped in to keep her from saying what ever that look on her face was attempting to say. "I'll catch you later and we can have coffee and pie." Carter shrugged his shoulders, "or pie and something."

She felt him start to hug her and his offer. You couldn't help but feel he was trying to quickly end the conversation for now as they both felt like this was making the other feel extremely uncomfortable.

"Sounds like a plan." Abby answered. "We have a lot of catching up to do."

Abby could sense how reluctant Carter was about everything. She brought her hand up to rest on his arm before he could walk away from her. "I'm still your friend John, no matter what you can always talk to me."

When Carter nodded his response Abby smiled she couldn't help it. Carter even after all that time still had the same demeanor which was a part of his chair, part of what made him a good doctor.

She watched him walk away from her towards the lounge. That was the first time that she had noticed it. Carter's walk wasn't the same. He limped and had a cane tucked tightly against his left side. Abby didn't know what had happened. The only thing she knew for sure was the Carter that had returned from overseas was not the same one that had left for Paris. That Carter was excited and she couldn't figure it out.

Abby watched Carter walking away and Luka walking up to him. She watched the two men interacting pats on the back. They appeared to be happy to see each other. They were two old friends who had shared a lot. She couldn't make out what the two men were saying to each other but the conversation seemed to stop while they walked into the lounge.

Part of her wanted to be nosy and follow but part of her knew that she needed to be respect Carter and he'd tell her when and what she needed to know. She turned to pick up a chart and go back to work. A very small part of her knowing that Luka would tell her if something bad had gone on. Abby had just assumed that Luka had told Carter that they were having a baby. But the look on Carter's face said something just a little bit different. Things had changed for everyone. Carter in her mind had Kem and well her and Luka had a fairly stable relationship, most importantly Abby was finally able to know what it felt like to be happy.

She picked up at chart and headed back to work. There wasn't much else that she could do right now. She would stay busy until one of the two men, and she knew without a shadow of a doubt which one of them would definitely crack with a little bit of Abby pressure.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

"She looks happy." A long awkward pause was not what Carter had wanted here, "I'm really happy for both of you."

"John it's okay." Luka replied. Everyone at County knew the history between the three doctors. Secrets were not easy to keep within the walls of the hospital. Some how some way, they always managed to discover that which was trying to be hidden.

"No really I am. You both deserve it." He could say it, try not to let emotions hang right there on his sleeve where they could easily be seen. On the inside bitterness and jealousy, those were the emotions that were running through him.

"Yeah," Carter watched Luka answer him and glance up at him once again. "You're looking pretty good."

Carter just nodded now. It wasn't something that he was comfortable talking about but he knew he should probably say something. "I'm feeling good." A simple answer now even behind the closed doors of the lounge.

"Time with your sister was a good thing." It was Luka's turn to put in the pause now and a sigh, "does anyone else know?"

Carter shook his head, "not that I know of." He sank down into the couch there, his eyes on the tall Croatian who had crossed the room to fill up mugs of coffee returning and holding out one of them to Carter, steam rising from the cup. "Why tell anyone it's over and done." Carter spoke before taking a sip of the coffee.

"I don't know John." The more experienced doctor replied.

You could see the lines upon his face. The ones that were there from the stress of the events in Africa, "what would it accomplish? Nothing really, gain me some pity, unwanted attention. The limp so far has gone unnoticed. I just rather not talk about it anymore."

Both men were silent now for a minute as if each of them was formulating what to say.

"I don't blame you there. But sooner or later people will ask questions not just about that but they will notice that Kem is never around." There was a sympathetic look upon Luka's face as he spoke.

"Ken and my relationship really does not concern anyone here at the hospital. If they want to gossip," Carter's tone turned to one that was irritated. "Then by all means let them gossip." Carter was still bothered by the failure of his married and that he could not have kept things together.

"No signs of reconciliation then?" Luka genuinely cared about Carter and considered him a good friend after their last trip to Africa together.

"No I wish." Carter let out a deep sigh now.

"Are you even still talking?"

When Luka asked him that question his eyes rolled back and he let out a soft sarcastic laugh. "She isn't even taking my phone calls anymore." He looked down at his hands were he nervously began to rub his wrist. "She says it is too painful to go through the motions of trying."

Painful, all of this had been painful. Carter couldn't comprehend or even begin to understand why Kem didn't think that this was just as painful for him. While the pain of losing Joshua was real and cut deep, Carter sucked it up and fought every day to keep living, after all that was the way he could do great things in his eyes, in remembrance of Joshua.

"She's given up, perhaps Carter it just was not meant to be."

"Christ Luka, even you cannot believe that." Carter was getting just a little agitated and unless you really know him you probably wouldn't have seen the frustration that clouded his big brown eyes.

The older doctor softened his tone. "Yes I do." He really wished that he had some solid advice that would pull him out of the Kem funk he was drowning in.

Carter stood up and began to pace back and forth rubbing his wrists nearly raw as he ranted. "I left Chicago for her. Gave up my life here in the States because I loved her and thought that she felt the saw way." He threw his hands up in the air. "She's shut down, stopped living, and she refuses to leave Paris. All that work that she started she wants nothing." He stopped walking, tears forming in his eyes. There was a deep sadness in his voice, "nothing and that includes me." That was the kick in the head. "It's over, I'm trying to respect what she wants knowing in the end that I can't make her want to live, I can't make her love me or want to be with me."

"You are right there." Luka said, "but you need to keep living, fresh start."

No one seemed to have the words that he wanted to hear. Did he really know what it was that he needed to hear? Somewhere beneath the pain and the hurt there was a glimmer, some feeling that resembled healing. But blow after blow had left him insecure. That confident doctor, tenured Associate Professor of Emergency Medicine was no longer shinning bright. So he just nodded as if he was agreeing with him.

"Why don't we go out tonight?" Luka asked, "beer, burgers and bulls?"

Now Carter knew if he turned Luka down he'd keep asking over and over again. "What about Abby?" Use the pregnant Abby to get out of this. "Shouldn't the two of you be busy with baby things?"

"Ah," he said giving Carter a smile, "she could use some time outside of the house."

Carter's eyes got a little wide he wasn't expecting that answer at all. "You are going to take a pregnant, might I add, very obviously pregnant Abby to a sports bar?"

Luka noticed that look of sheer surprise borderline shock. "She likes to go out every now and then. She's pregnant not breaking. She likes burgers right now and taking her with us will save me from having to go out later and get them for her… maybe."

There went that plan right out of the window. Carter would have to come up with another excuse pretty quick or Luka would smell what was up and see right through Carter's rouse. "Are you sure you shouldn't discuss this with Abby first?"

Before Luka could answer a head poked into the lounge. "Dr. Kovac, Dr. Carter, MVC five minutes out."

"Thanks Abby."

Carter hadn't said yes to the offer and he was thankful for the bad drivers in Chicago. MVC to start his first shift, not to bad, but it also got him off the hook.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7:

She had taken the MICN call, grabbed the two senior doctors who were there and was working on pulling on a trauma gown before walking towards the sliding glass automatic doors of the ambulance bay.

There was a chill in the air still. That was the wind blowing for you. Chicago wasn't known as the windy city for no reason. Without a coat on, nothing but the yellow paper trauma gown, Abby could feel the wind nipping at her skin. What had just been soft flutters in her stomach were a lot harder now. It was as if the child was complaining of being cold itself.

"What are you doing out here? You should be inside where it is warm Abby."

Abby turned around hearing the voice, not knowing what it has said as she had been lost in her own thoughts. "What?"

"Are you alright?"

"Yeah, Luka, I am fine." Abby replied. She looked at him, "really I'm okay. I can still do this."

This was one of those areas where they argued and completely disagreed with each other. Luka wanted her to take time off, Abby wanted to work as long as she could to keep from going stir crazy at home with nothing to do.

"I'm not saying you can't." Luka said.

"Could we not having this argument right now?" She asked.

"I'm not arguing." Instant defensive posture.

Abby just shook her head in disbelief. "Yes you are. We'll like always discuss this later."

Carter's laughter broke some of the tension. However it did catch Abby's well practiced dart throwing stare. Some things never lost there edge just became well honed.

Abby rocked back and forth on her hells only pausing again when she started to speak, "glad you found that so hilarious Carter." It was however a good sound to hear Carter's voice and to hear his laughter after his months of being gone.

Carter looked away for a brief moment. It was as if Abby had caught him between a rock and a hard place. It left him feeling awkward and both Abby and Luka picked up on that one. Abby heard Luka's laugh, while a nervous one, at least it was an attempt to put them all at ease.

"Thought the ETA was five minutes Abs."

"That's what Zadro told me." Abby shrugged her shoulders now. "Complaining about getting a small break already?"

"Yeah right," Luka replied. "Do you miss the heat?" Luka's eyes glanced over towards Carter again.

"About now I am." Carter replied as he tried desperately to relax around his friends. Luka he could be at ease with, a long solid friendship had developed. Carter and Abby had a bumpy past history. Sad thing was Abby and everyone else already knew about that history as well.

"John," Abby said her voice soft with him. "I'm getting hungry. Do you think that after this you'd be up for being my escort?"

Abby knew she was boxing him in. That was her entire goal after all. Getting Carter to say yes, clear the air and while they could never go back to where they had been at least get on a solid friendship level.

"Sure." The tone that she heard back was not a happy one and someone that was most definitely pissed off, to say the least extremely annoyed.

"Thanks John." Abby tired to keep her tone upbeat to match her emotional level but things were taking a shit and fast. She didn't know where else to take things and perhaps right now the best thing she could do was drop it. Although the little voice inside her head said that she shouldn't do that right now. She found herself wishing that the ambulance would come flying through the bay.

As the sirens finally broke the silence and the lights reflected off the walls Abby couldn't help but let that sigh escape from her. They could work together, Carter could work with Luka, he used to be able to work with Abby but that was when she had been a nurse, able to anticipate his moves moments before he made them. It made them a great ER team. Abby and Luka worked well together. He had been a good and patient teacher. Carter had been a good teacher too. Abby knew she shouldn't compare the two men like that.

"I got this." Carter headed for the back of the first rig. That was his first attempt at an escape. He gave one quick glance over his shoulder. The limp hard to hide but he hoped he was hiding it well. He wasn't as fast as he had been. Trying to keep up with the paramedics was a challenge but he was determined now to fall right back where he had been.

"Do you need a hand Carter?" It was Abby's voice that was coming to his ears right now.

"No I got it." Carter answered as he listened to the medics rattle off the bullet. He was glancing down at his patient as they rolled into that first, always cold, yellow trauma room. "On my count," Carter prepped to help slide the patient over onto the ER gurney. "One, two, three," they worked on sliding the man from one place to another. Carter started in on a rapid assessment of his patient. After the ABC's and the bleeding was under control, things were looking up for both doctor and patient, more so for the patient than for Carter.

Almost on autopilot now, not quiet like riding a bike but fine honed skills not as rusty as he feared. He knew how to heal, that much he remembered. He was used to having much less technology and having to rely on his gut feelings and the subtle differences between diseases. As the patient was taken upstairs by a 2nd year resident Carter was able to catch his breath and know to this point he'd done his job.

As the hours ticked by there was a steady flow into the ER. Not an overflow yet, but enough to keep a short wait and the doctors there jumping.

"Got time for a cup of coffee now?" Carter heard a familiar voice calling from behind him. He stopped what he'd been doing so that he could turn to the side.

"Oh hey," Carter said as his eyes focused up on Abby. That was the least that he could do to be respectful to someone who was an old of friend as Abby was. "I'm uh." There was no real excuse for him not to go with her. "Yeah I can go." There was a sigh as he said that even though he shouldn't have.

"Great." Carter watched Abby's reaction to his response, trying to gauge her. She was smiling and still appeared to be in a good mood. Carter looked up at the board before smiling back at Abby, "let's roll then shall we?"

Carter wasn't surprised that she wanted to spend some time around him, at the same time Carter was afraid of there the conversation might go. There were a few things that Carter just really didn't want to talk about anymore. But that didn't mean that Abby wouldn't want to talk about any of those subjects that she wouldn't ask about Kem or where she was at and not with Carter.

So it wasn't actually Abby he was afraid of, but the conversation revolving around his soon to be ex-wife. He wanted to focus on something a little more positive. Kem wasn't a positive topic of conversation. She was a sore spot in his life right now. He doubted that things would ever return to normal.

Abby slipped her arm inside Carter's "ready and starving." Simple reply, "thank you for coming with me because snacks are always better when there is some one there to share them with."

Carter wanted to keep the conversation going if he could. "It is the least that I could do for you. I'm surprised that you are not dying for Luka to be the one going with you."

"Oh it's not that I prefer one of you over the other. But I spend most of my time with Luka and I haven't seen you in a long time, almost to long."

Carter could sense that, that statement was almost an attempt to lead the conversation somewhere, "always nice to know."

"How was Africa?" She had to ask. There were could things that had come from Africa and then there was some really bad things that had come from those trips across the great big pond. Kem had been so happy when they had been in Paris as well as in Kisangani or even in Matenda. Chicago hadn't made her happy, she did well it seemed when they were apart not near each other.

"Africa was a different experience." Carter said softly looking down as they slipped into a booth. "I understand fully why you wouldn't want Luka to go especially now."

Abby shook her head now, "well there was more to it than that." She seemed to tense up a little bit more now.

"I see," Carter said, "too dangerous for your taste."

Abby didn't say anything. Carter became quieter now, that sensation that he'd said something wrong creeping into him. She just seemed much too uncomfortable now with him sitting there. "I'm sorry Abby." He looked down now feeling about two inches tall. "I didn't mean anything by that." He had a pretty good idea of what she had said and the reason behind it and he did feel pretty guilty now that he had said it.

"Don't worry about it Carter." Abby said shifting in the booth a little more. "What happened in the past says there."

Carter just nodded in agreement. There wasn't much else to add to that part of the conversation. How would you respond to something like that. "You look like you are really happy Abby."

"I am John." Abby's response was pretty soft right now, she just couldn't help it.

"That's good to Abby, really good. You of all the people I know deserve to be happy. You could say you almost glow." Carter tried to pull off a small smile for Abby. The just needed to not be so uptight with each other and boy they seemed to know it, but they just could seem to do it.

Silence fell between the two of at the table. Each of them drinking the respective drink that was in front of them and perhaps a little silence would be a good thing.

"So do you know if it's a boy or a girl?" Carter asked now showing genuine interest.

"Ah, no we don't know." Abby said with that same soft expression on her face. "One of the few true surprises left in life and I didn't want to ruin it."

"Understandable." Carter replied trying to keep the sadness from within his voice.

She reached across the table gently placing her hand upon his and gave him a very sympathetic smile. "I know seeing all of this has to be very difficult for you John." There was compassion in her voice, part of that could have been from being in the same situation, pregnant and very nervous Abby. But she had also been the night that Carter and Kem had lost the baby and she knew that Carter had to being going through a rough time right now seeing her in the position she was in and she was with Luka of all people. An ex-lover with a best friend she knew the relationship between the two men.

"Ah, I'm fine with it all." Carter said softer with his voice now but he was trying desperately to hide any emotion. He returned her gentle touch with one of his own. "Really all of this doesn't bother me."

Now Abby new that Carter was not necessarily lying to him. But it was true and clear that this did bother him. The only question remained was if she called him on it or not. She decided that at this time it was probably best just to let everything go. Some things were better just not to push. For Abby didn't really want to upset John anymore than he already seemed, "where are you staying in Chicago now that you are back in town again?"

"I am staying in the house on Deerborn street." Carter answered rather rapidly.

Abby didn't know if staying there was a good idea. That was the same house that he had Kem had been expecting the baby in. She hadn't ever taken the time to ask Carter how Kem was doing and she was the man's wife. Rather than say something a start a fight or bringing up anything that might be upsetting, she just simply nodded her answer to him in agreement. "Things haven't been the same since you left."

Carter leaned back in the booth throwing his hands up in the air and smiled that boyish charming smile of his. "Ah, what can I say, I'm just another fixture around here."

Abby softly laughed as he answered and she saw that real smile. That smile hadn't been seen by her in a very long, long time.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

Abby and Carter had walked across the street and into the diner. Luka had watched them from the ambulance bay as he waited for the next run to arrive.

Anna had crossed through the parking lot and was making her way through the bay. "Are you going to need another set of hands?" She asked as she neared.

"Nah, Dr. Del Amico. I think that I have this one, are you on tonight?"

"Yeah I'm over night tonight." She didn't break her stride as she answered.

"I'll get you if this turns out to be pediatric."

"Thanks Luka." Anna's Philadelphia accent came across almost as think as Luka's Croatian accent.

Luka approached the back of the rig that had just pulled up, "whoa Anna wait." He called out seeing that his patient was not what he thought he was going to be getting. "I'm going need that pediatrician after all." In the back of the ambulance there was a very pregnant woman.

"29 year-old female, 38 weeks pregnant, paragravida," Doris a familiar EMT face began to rattle off for the bullet for the ER doctor that was there. "BP is one twenty over eighty, pulse is sixty-eight and her respirations are sixteen."

So far everything seemed pretty run of the mill and not out of the ordinary for a delivery, other than the fact that the woman was in the back of an ambulance. Anna had fallen now in step with the gurney after handing off her things to the nurse that she had run into first. She slid her arms into a trauma gown and prepared to help with the delivery of the arriving infant.

"Dr. Del Amico." Luka's deep voice was calm. The look on the physician's face told you otherwise. He waited for her to move into position so he could have an extra set of hands for the baby.

This baby however was not going to be a run of the mill delivery. The paramedics had done their job and clearly this was becoming more difficult.

"Breech presentation," Luka said keeping that same tone in his voice. Anna had moved to his side ready to take over the infants care. Luka and Anna momentarily caught each others looks as if they could read the mind of the other are they very carefully and diligently worked to bring the infant into the world. While Luka tended to the mother's post delivery needs Anna took care of the newborn. A small, tiny and a little blue at first baby girl she soon pinked up and even after the traumatic entrance into the world appeared healthy.

"Nice delivery Dr. Kovac." Anna said as they stood now filling out the charts.

He looked her direction and nodded. He was friends, good friends with the pediatrician that had just come on staff at County to help with the physician crunch that County had been feeling. He watched her face for a moment as what appeared to be a puzzled expression crossed it, "something wrong?"

She looked up at him, "Dr. Carter is that really John Carter?"

Luka shrugged his shoulders as he closed and tossed the chart with the others from the day. "Yes," a very simple answer for a question that she wasn't sure why she was asking it.

Anna shook her head in disbelief. "I can't believe that he's working here after all this time."

"You know Carter?"

Anna laughed softly. "Oh yes, we were medical interns here together back in 1997. Did I not mention that in all the times that we have talked?"

Luka could see the smile upon her facing saying that she had some fond memories from back then of Carter. "He's on tonight. Actually he's on a break right now with Abby over at Ike's. You know Abby she's always starving now."

Anna just softly shook her head, "yeah I know she has been eating like a horse. Baby is due soon right?"

"Yeah just another eight weeks and the little one should arrive."

"You both must be so proud." Anna said.

"What about you and your Max." Luka asked her. He knew that Anna had been married and that they were having problems, part of the reason that she was back in Chicago. They had become friends and talked a lot. He knew quite a bit of what was going on in her life, more so than anyone else there. He'd given her a shoulder to cry on and as much advice as a friend could give.

The smile faded from Anna's face at the mention of her husband's name. "Ah we are now divorced." She sadly answered. Anna and Max's split had been anything but good or even clean. It was nasty and Max had been extremely cut throat. Nothing about it was simple and Anna had barely managed to walk away from it with her sanity in tact. "He's still in Philadelphia."

"Good old Max." A voice from behind her said, "things pleasant in Annaville?"

She spun around to see Carter standing there. She didn't know what to make of him making that statement but they hadn't left each other on the best of terms. "John," Anna said with a surprised tone to her voice. "How good it is to see you." She was pleasant towards him. She had no reason to be anything less. "All is well."

She watched his posture change. Although she wasn't sure what to make of it, it was somewhere between defensive and not nearly friendly like she thought he would have been. After all they had worked closely together.

"It's good to see you Dr. Del Amico." You could hear the sarcasm dripping from his voice. There might have been some touch of distain to it as well.

Anna shook her head; she really didn't know what else to say to him. It was starting to feel like a long shift was about to commence. She nodded for him again, "of course Carter." She didn't want to upset him, at least not anymore than he appeared to be.

Anna was avoiding bringing Max into the conversation. She knew it wouldn't do either of them any good. "So Max is still in Philadelphia, will he be joining you here in Chicago?"

She shook her head. "No, John, Max will not be joining me here in Chicago." Anna didn't make eye contact with Carter right now. She hated how talking about Max made her feel.

Carter's head dropped a little now as he realized what she was saying and that she was no longer looking at him. He brought his hand up to rest on her shoulder. "If you need to talk I'm here." Maybe they had more in common now that he thought.

Anna wasn't sure what had suddenly changed his attitude with her. Something seemed to have caused him to soften up with her. Anna's voice softened with Carter in response to his change. "It's okay. It's over and I'm just trying to move on." That was the plain and simple truth. She had no reason to hide what was or rather what had happened between her and her ex-husband. "Its better things are this way." She pulled away from him. The conversation had gotten to difficult for Anna to continue it willingly. But it almost appeared like Carter did not want to let it go.

"We should get some coffee later." Carter said picking up a chart. "Since we are both going to be here overnight."

Anna wasn't sure what to say to that. She really didn't want to do that because she'd feel trapped there and feel gilded into doing nothing but having to talk with him. Now granted Anna did want to know what had been going on with John since she'd left to go back to Philadelphia. "Yeah John, if there's time tonight that would be great. I'm the only pediatrician on tonight."

"Ah, I didn't know that we still had a pediatric doctor on staff again." Carter stated. "Well not since Dr. Finch left us."

Anna shrugged her shoulders. "Weaver was kind enough to bring me on staff again about six months ago." Anna explained. "Since I'm doubled boarded she figured that she might as well use what expertise I could bring to the time. Gives her another grant opportunity I suppose."

"Leave it to Weaver to spot a potential money source in her midst." Carter said rather quickly, "and she also knows a good doctor when she sees one."

"Save that one huh." Ann smiled softly, "no I'm also on staff for now over at Northwestern for the time since I am not getting the hours that I really need."

"Sorry to hear that Anna," Carter said. "Working at two hospitals can't be easy."

"Yeah but it's got to be done you know." Anna responded. "That and Northwestern being private no only pays better but they treat their doctors a little better than Weaver can."

"That's still a lot of time that you have to put in getting back and forth between the two hospitals and home." Carter said. "Where are you staying these days?"

"Not on Michigan Avenue if that's what you are thinking. Even I can't afford an apartment in that neighborhood as an attending at a county facility." Anna answered. "I'm living up near Hyde Park."

"That's no a bad area of town to be living in." Carter answered.

"I should get back to work here." Anna said looking at the board containing the evening starting collection of patients that were going to be needing their attention. "I can take some of the adults that are starting to fill your board and baby sit residents and medical students to help you out."

"Ah, only if you are up for it otherwise I think that I can handle it. There are really no pediatric cases right now." Carter said.

"Don't worry about it. I just came on so I am ready to go." Anna said. "Catch you later Carter." And with that Anna was off and running to start the night shift.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

Carter watched Anna take a chart and walk off down the hallway with an unwavering confidence. She however didn't seem like the same person she'd been when they worked together back in 97. Carter just jumped right back into work. But found his thoughts drifting back to the two women who had played important roles in his past.

He rapped a chart against the palm of his had as he got lost deep in thought. After a few minutes he came back to reality and knew that he should get back to work before they realized he was getting behind. Slowly he worked his way through the patients. An allergic reaction, a drunk, a woman who had come off her lithium, a man who needed stitches from accidentally locking his keys in the car that was the gist of his night.

"Jerry, where's Dr. Del Amico?" Carter asked as he watched the desk clerk look up at him.

"She's in exam two with an ear infection."

"Thanks Jerry." Carter said as he quickly headed down the hallway. Carter poked his head into the exam room, "Dr. Del Amico."

Anna looked up from the patient that she was treating when she heard a voice calling her name. "Be back in a minute, excuse me please." She stood up and stepped into the hallway to join Carter, "yes Doctor Carter."

"Care to take a ride with me?" Carter asked.

"Where, what," Anna answered, "I've got patients."

"MICN call came in." Carter said holding out a jacket now for Anna. "Car accident on the Kennedy and they are requesting assistance on the scene."

Anna didn't hesitate sliding her arms into the jacket. Going out onto the scene meant that there were severely injured people out there that needed some help, "I'm with you."

They hurried down the hall side by side and nearly in step with each other. While Carter and Anna hadn't worked together in years, they both knew what needed to be done. The ride up to the roof was short and they were both silent immersed in thoughts of what was going to be needed done.

With their heads down, the whirring of the helicopter blades breaking the silence of the early morning hours before dawn the chopper door slide open and the two emergency room physicians climbed inside and took off from the rooftop of the level one trauma center. The ride would be quick yet one that would be taken in silence. Preparations being made in their heads of that they were going to find on the ground. They landed in the landing zone set up on a section of the now closed expressway. As quickly and carefully as they had climbed on to the chopped they disembarked.

The scene was total chaos. There were a few people up and walking around but they appeared to be dazed and confused. In spite of the confusion, Anna and Carter jumped right in to begin the process of triage.

Anna immediately was caught up by a paramedic and Carter watched her disappeared in the crowds of people. He fell into doctor mode as he went from patient to patient that were lying on the ground. He sent as many as he could via ground transport. Time passed, about fifteen minutes and Carter still hadn't seen Anna. There were fewer people there, a small crowd of firemen around a vehicle that was tipped on its side.

"What's going on Zadro?" Carter asked as he approached the vehicle.

"Family was trapped in the vehicle." Zadro began to explain. "Dr. Del Amico went in to start and IV against the rescue squads' advice and the vehicle tipped the rest of the way over."

Carter fought the urge to drop everything and run the rest of the way over there. He became worried about Anna's well being now that she was potentially an accident victim. Not that he wanted anything bad to happen to Anna. Carter got as close to the vehicle as they would let him. "Anna," there was an awkward pause, "Anna can you hear me?" Carter's voice cracked as he became extremely worried about Anna when she didn't instantly answer him. He frantically turned to the fireman standing there. "We've got to get them out now."

The fireman just gave Carter the same look that he would have given anyone else. "We are working on it doc." How they let Anna climb into an unstable vehicle to begin with was beyond Carter's comprehension and all he knew was that he needed to get Anna out of the dangerous situation that she had found herself in.

"Anna." Carter moved around to try and get a better look to see if there wasn't some small way that Carter could get to her himself. The door she had been working through was now smashed against the cold hard ground the vehicle having fallen from its precarious position against the cement barriers. The doors that Carter could see had been smashed by the vehicle it had collided with and that left Anna, the toddler and one school age child in there. Despite all fear, Carter began to prepare to organize the situation.

He called out a couple more times as he searched along the side of the twisted metal. He could see her now inside the vehicle but couldn't reach her. There was urgency in the way that he was trying to get to her. The toddler was more on top of Anna now that the car had tipped over. Carter climbed on top of the vehicle thinking that he might be able to get in that way. The window of the SUV was broken in but Carter wasn't sure he could fit in that way. He was larger than Anna was and that opening was pretty narrow.

The firemen pulled Carter from the top of the car now that the Jaws of Life had arrived. He was able to relax in his eyes as the cavalry had arrived. He tried to stay back now as he watched the twisted metal slowly peel away from his friend bringing her closer to freedom. He had the medical bag in his hand now ready to jump in there ASAP. However, he was handed the little girl and Carter knew Anna would want him to take care of her small patient. He thought that he would get the child over to the waiting paramedics, checking her out as they moved. He handed her over to another team and as Carter turned around they were pulling his colleague from the wreckage. She was pale looking from where he was standing getting closer towards her. He couldn't tell yet what was wrong with her but he knew something wasn't right with the way that she looked even at a distance.

Her eyes were still closed but she had a grimace upon her face, or something that resembled a grimace. The side of her blue jacket was turning a deep shade of crimson. Carter looked at the two medics that were there both familiar faces. Doris was now trying to start an IV now as Anna had been moved onto the gurney. Zadro placed oxygen on Anna as Carter pulled away the jacket looking for the source of the bleeding.

"What happened?" Carter asked hoping to get a clearer picture of what happened in the back of that car."

"She protected the toddler." Zadro said. "She landed on a piece of bent metal, impaling her lower left quadrant." Both medics were now into patient care mode.

Carter began to check over her battered body. His hand rested on her sternum now rubbing back and forth. "Anna, come on Anna, you need to open your eyes." His hand moved abated breath as he waited for a response from her. She barely brought her hand up to prevent him from hurting her anymore than he already had. Her moving even just that small little bit showed that she was still with them. Carter would take what hope he could get. "Come on Anna, open those eyes of yours for me."

Carter was looking Anna over and they headed toward the ambulance. He thought about putting her in the chopper but the ambulance was right there and at the most they were ten minutes away from the hospital. Carter had the IV wide open trying to keep up with the blood loss from the laceration in her side. He applied pressure to the bleeding in hopes that he could get it to stop. She'd have to go up to surgery, but Carter already knew that much. But right now it was a race to get Anna to County within that Golden Hour. Time seemed to race, but Carter had his eye on the clock knowing exactly where they stood.

They pulled into the ambulance bay and Carter didn't even wait for the door to open to receive them. He had Anna packed up and ready to go. He pushed the door open as he jumped down and started to pull the gurney off the back. Moving with a sense of urgency he started to roll her inside.

"What do you have?" A voice called.

Carter was listening to Anna's chest now so it too a minute for the voice to register with him. "Anna." It was a very simple response to the question but he was too preoccupied to talk right now.

"What happened?" Luka seemed surprised that she had been brought in.

"She was rescuing a patient trapped in a MV when it rolled on her." Carter slammed the breaks on the gurney. "Impaled RLQ by a piece of the car," Carter rattled off the vitals since he'd been with Anna since they pulled her free from the wreck. All he wanted was the best for his friend and he held out hope.

"Page surgery, get Neela down here now. She's going to need the wound explored and cleaned." Luka said as he concentrated on the patient now as well. It didn't take them very long before they had a surgical consult and Anna was on her way upstairs to an OR.


	10. Chapter 10

A/N:_ Thanks to everyone who has given postitive reviews, I really appreciate them. And one short side note here, I did not start out writing this with any intention of breaking up Abby and Luka. That's not what this story is about.. it is not a carby nor will it ever be. I have several chapters already written it takes time however to transpose them from paper to computer as I wrote most of this while I was at boot camp with pen and flashlight. _

Chapter 10

Luka and Carter stood outside the ER now. Both men were tired from the long hours that they had put in and you could see the worry and concern that was on their faces with no work from upstairs about their friend.

"She seemed so quiet today." Carter said.

"No more than any other day." Luka said having spent a lot of time with Anna lately.

"What?" Carter asked looking at him.

"Anna, she wasn't overly quiet. She's usually like that. She's been pretty withdrawn especially at work." Luka answered.

"I didn't realize that you two were close." Carter replied.

"I wouldn't say that we are close." Luka responded. He didn't fully know the history between the two doctors but by Carter's reaction you could tell that there had been something there. "We've worked together for awhile and she and Abby have hit it off really well."

"I'm happy that Anna still has friends here." Carter sighed softly.

"She speaks highly of you." Luka chimed in. "She said that when she was first here in 97 or so that you worked well together."

Carter smiled, "yeah we did work well together and those were some good times back then."

He remembered those times with them together. He'd had a small crush upon her back then, but Max had come back into Anna's life and stole her back. She'd not said a whole lot before she'd gone back to Philadelphia and supposed back to her family.

"She doesn't like to talk about Max." Luka said.

"That could be why she could have gotten so quiet when I mentioned his name." Carter felt a pang of guilt. "Was the divorce messy?"

Luka shrugged his shoulders now. "She hasn't said that much to me about it. I've only seen him once the entire time that she's been here. They fought pretty loudly in the bay."

Carter crossed his arms over his chest. "I hate men that walk all over women like that."

Luka nodded, "I know I was worried about her after they fought. He didn't seem too happy and she was very quiet."

"I didn't like him back when he first appeared in Chicago. He doesn't seem to be that great of a guy. But I wanted Anna to be happy. Max at the time seemed to make her happy." Carter could only hope that had really been the case that she had happiness. But with a man like Max one could never be certain about something as simple as being happy.

"I'm sure she's going to be fine." Luka said with an eerie calmness to his voice, almost as if it was the voice of experience speaking. "She's strong and strong willed both things in her favor."

Now Carter wished he could believe those things but the Anna that he saw didn't appear to be either. His focus needed to be on the present, the past could not be changed. His friend was up in the OR having surgery to repair injuries from trying to make a difference in someone's small life. Carter just wanted some kind of word from upstairs that everything was going to be alright. As the time slowly passed Luka went to finish the shift he'd been called in for and to partially cover the last remaining bit of what was Anna's shift.

Carter wanted nothing more than to head upstairs but no news was good news. As the day shift slowly began to filter in to take over Carter began to drag himself. Walking outside again, this time to grab a cup of hot coffee before heading up to the SICU where he knew his friend would be, hopefully recovering in a bed nearly ready to bit his head off or laughing with those blue eyes of hers.

Carter remembered the night that had come down and bailed him out of jail. But the memory that burned him the most, the one that haunted him was how she looked the night Max came to Chicago. Her long hair down on her shoulders blowing in the wind. The look on her face as Max's hand touched her face that made her eyes scream I'm sorry.

None of that could be changed. As far as Carter knew Anna knew nothing of Joshua or Kem that he'd been married and now was once again alone. Time had appeared to have changed both of them. Carter however wanted nothing but his friend back. For he knew neither of their hearts could handle anything more right now. Hell he didn't know what he would do if Anna didn't pull through this. She had to though. Carter really needed to be able to reconnect with her.

She arrived at the SICU, flirted with Kit for a few minutes before he went in to where he was told she could be. Carefully, almost painfully, he placed his hand on the door pushing it open. So that he could cross into the room. There she lay on the bed. She looked as if she was nothing more than a sleeping angel. The sounds coming from the machines let you know of the steady beat of her hears, rise and fall of her chest. That Anna was still among the living. She was pale, there was no red glow or pink tint to her cheeks that they would have had if she'd been up on her feet.

Carter sat down next to her hospital bed. It took him a few minutes before he reached out to take her hand into his. Her body was warm to the touch letting him know that she was still alive and there with them.

"Anna I'm here." His voice nothing more than a soft whisper. That was all that was needed in the small room. He wished her eyes would open. With his other hand he reached up and gently brushed the loose strands of hair from her face. Anna's eyes fluttered from the touch.

"Hello Dr. Carter," a female voice broke the silence of the room.

Carter looked up for a brief moment. "Hey Neela," he answered back when it fully registered who was there with him, "how is she doing?"

Neela gave him a soft yet seasoned smile. No longer an intern she had some medical seasoning under her belt. "We were able to repair some of the damage from the accident. There was a small liver laceration that we stitched up but we were unable to repair the spleen."

Carter nodded as Neela spoke to him. So far none of that seemed all that horrible, nothing that seemed to be life-threatening. She could live without her spleen.

"She'll need to stay her for a couple of days and will probably need some help for a few more at home when she leaves here. Do you know if she has any family we could call for her?"

Carter shook his head no. Sure there was Max, but Carter didn't think that was information he should be sharing right now.

"I'll come back and check on her before my shift ends." Neela said as she sat the chart back down where it belonged.

Carter watched her leave the room and settled back down in the chair and crossed his arms against his chest. His eyes began to flutter closed from the length of the day and the toll that all of this added.

"Carter."

With his eyes closed and him being warm in the quiet room they didn't want to open.

"Carter."

There was that voice again. Soft and friendly one that he had heard before and that he knew as a familiar smell hit is nose. One eye slowly cracked open. He waited the minute it took for his brain to shake the cobwebs free. "Hey Abby," Carter said in that soft sleepy voice. "What are you doing here?"

"I came to see how Anna was doing." Abby answered. "Luka told me about the accident." She said down next to him now. "I got you a coffee."

"Thanks Abby." Carter said as he took the hot liquid in the Styrofoam cup from her with a small sleepy smile.

"Neela says she'll be able to go home soon." Abby started to attempt to make some conversation with him, "but that she'll need to have someone stay there with her." Abby knew Anna's family was fairly far away.

Carter looked at Abby then at Anna before his eyes went back again to Abby. "I thought well if she well let me," awkward pauses between his words now, "maybe I could help her out." Why was it so hard to spit that out?

"I'm sure she'd be okay with that. Granted I can't speak for her," Abby said. "That probably would put Luka at a little more ease so he'd stop worrying so damn much."

Carter looked at Abby a little more confused now that she had said that. "Why is Luka so worried about her?" He had to ask even if he wasn't really sure that he wanted to hear the answer. "Did I miss something?"

Abby looked at Carter, "miss something, oh no. Luka and Anna just hit it off really well when Anna came back on staff here about six months ago."

A soft barely audible moan came from the hospital bed causing both of them to stop their conversation and turn their attention back to Anna.

"Hey there," Carter said as he moved to take her hand. "Anna come on, open those eyes of yours," he gave her small words of encouragement.

They both kept their eyes on her waiting for her to wake up. You could see her eyelids flutter, see her fight and desire to want to wake up and be there with them. After a few minutes her eyes opened all the way and Anna managed to keep them open. Carter and Abby exchanged smiles before they both smiled at Anna.

"Welcome back," Abby said softly, "how are you feeling?"

He throat felt horse and scratchy. Her stomach hurt and she was sore all over. "Thirsty," the whisper barely came out of her throat now. "What happened?"

Abby reached over and filled Anna a glass with water. "Drink slow," Abby said.

"You don't remember the accident?" Carter asked.

Anna took a small slow drink from the glass she'd been handed. "I remember being in a car with a little girl but that's about it."

"It tipped the rest of the way over while you were in there." Carter told her. It wouldn't' hurt Anna to know the truth about what had happened.

"Is the little girl okay?" Anna asked you could hear the concern in her voice now as she spoke. Part of the reason she became a pediatrician was her love for children. She had a soft spot for them.

"Yes Anna." Carter replied. "She's in the PICU right now, but you don't have to worry she was holding her own the last time I went and checked on her."

Anna let out a soft sigh and you could see her body relax more into the bed.

"You know you'll be okay too." Carter said.

Anna just rolled her eyes at Carter now, "ah I figured as much. Something inside just screamed not my time to go."

"Some of us are kind of fond of you." Abby said with a soft laugh.

"I'm not sure that is a good thing." Anna's eyes were getting heavy again from the pain meds she was on.

Carter stood up now. "You should get some rest and then soon I can break you out and take you home to sleep in your own comfortable bed."

Anna nodded her response to him. That was about all that she could muster the strength to do. Carter patted her hand before getting ready to leave. But he wanted to keep her in good spirits. "Behave now. I'm going to go and feed the pregnant Abby and then bring you some contra band."

Anna gave him some form of a smile as she drifted back off to sleep again. Carter and Abby both knew that Anna needed the rest so her body could finish healing. They slowly headed out of the SICU room and down the hallway.

"You should head home and get some sleep John. You look like you are about ready to die."

"I wanted to make sure that she had someone here when she woke up." Carter said as he stretched his arms over his head.

"Ah I believe that you have done that." Abby said as she wrapped her arms around her waist holding her belly with a soft smile. "She'll be okay while you get some rest."

"You are probably right." Carter replied with that boyish grin upon his face, a grin that Abby hadn't seen in a very long time.

"I should make sure that there's enough people to cover the board since we are now short another physician."

"I'm sure that they have everything covered." Abby answered. "Even though you are a mighty fine doctor." She paused stopping her walking. She didn't want him to think that she didn't appreciate his skills or volunteering to carry another shift. "Besides you might be needed later in the day. You never know when we are going to need help around this place."

Carter pushed his hand through his hair, running his fingers through his sandy brown locks. "You sometimes are too smart for your own good." He really was tired and it was starting to show. "Although I will get out of here before something else comes up. The chairs upstairs are comfortable but so is my bed."

As they crossed into the ER their place slowed to almost a snail's crawl but the hustle and bustle of the ER continued on. It didn't matter to the outside world that one of their own was lying in a SICU bed and had come flying through those ER doors on a gurney fighting for her life.


	11. Chapter 11

_A/N: Ah thanks for the review, I'll try not to be so sensitive. I just enjoy the challenge of mixing up the characters and getting out of the normal molds that so many stories seem to take these days. Personally I think it lends more to the imagination if you get away from the same ole same old. We all have characters we love and mine are from the older days, not that I don't like the newer episodes... just like to add a little what if? But alas I will not resurrect the dead even though it's tempting sometimes. Okay enough of the jibber jabber and on with the story..._

Chapter 11

He gave Abby a soft hug, wished her a good day before heading into the lounge to gather up his things from the day before. He threw his bag over his shoulder and slid his sunglasses down to cover his eyes. It was cold outside but the sun was bright. He was getting acclimated once again to Chicago winters once again after being in the warmer African climate. When he stayed with Barbara he'd had a little bit of a chance to desentize in the colder northern climate. He pulled his coat a little tighter around himself as he walked down the street toward the house. The streets of Chicago were still familiar to him feeling almost as if he had never left. Carter knew better though to much had changed both here and with him. He walked up the stairs putting the key in the door lock. As the door opened he could feel the warmth yet it wasn't as homey as he would have like it. The house was nothing more than a place to sleep. He closed the door behind him tossing his keys and sunglasses down onto the table by the door. The place just seemed empty. He climbed the stairs as the fatigue started to set in even more now. He pulled the drapes shut. Carter always slept better in a dark room. Slowly he slid between the sheets and closed his eyes sinking down into the bed he drifted into a deep sleep.

Carter slept soundly for several hours when the ringing of the phone pulled him from his sleep. He rolled over and reached from the bed across the night stand to answer it.

"Hello," his voice was groggy and held the sound of someone who had just woken up.

Abby's voice came across the line. "Hey I am sorry to wake you up Carter."

"No worries." Carter replied as he sat up on the bed rubbing his eyes now. "What can I do for you?"

"It's Anna."

Hearing that snapped any remaining sleep from his body as he feared the worse, "is everything okay?"

"She's spiked a fever," Abby said.

Carter pushed the blankets all the way off him as he jumped out of bed. That was more than enough to get him moving. "I'll be right there Abby." Carter didn't wait for Abby to answer before he hung up the phone. He wanted to get there as soon as he could. She wasn't doing well. Spiking a fever this soon after surgery wasn't a good sign.

He threw on some sweats that were laying next to the bed and a sweatshirt since he thought it was probably still cold outside. He locked up the house and picked up a rather hurried pace because now he was dead worried about Anna.

He got to the ER and practically ran up to the SICU. Abby was standing outside with Neela. Short of breath he rapidly approached the two doctors.

"Is everything okay?"

"We're taking her back into surgery." Neela answered, "we are going to explore the abdomen again."

"Anything particular that you are looking for with her having a fever now," Carter asked with his arms crossed over his chest.

Neela reached out and touched his arm. "Everything will be okay." She said. "Dukenko is going to be on the case."

That didn't reassure Carter all that much. But then nothing probably would have. By now they would have probably called Max too. Carter didn't know how Anna would feel about that one. He didn't know how he felt about the whole ordeal but then Carter had heard only one side of the story and that wasn't the whole story either.

"Have you contacted any of her family?" The tone of his voice was rather cold and distant.

"The only person listed on her next of kin was her husband." Neela said, "I tried calling but no one answered."

Carter let out a sigh but he had no idea how to get in contact with any of her seven brothers. "Ex-husband," Carter corrected. "You might want to hold off on that one." Carter knew that Neela probably would hold off and that Anna would not like it but only time would tell. For now he was stuck playing the waiting game. Not fun for anyone. Fever usually meant an infection of some kind and an even longer stay in the SICU.

Abby actually looked exhausted and Carter knew that Anna would probably be in surgery for awhile. "Abby, why don't' you go and get some sleep you look exhausted."

"I'm okay." Abby answered.

"No, really you should get some sleep or eat. She's going to be in there awhile." That was the truth and he didn't want her stressed out with being pregnant and having shifts of her own to work.

Abby sighed, "you know that I know that you are right but that doesn't mean that I want to listen to you."

Carter cocked his head to one side and screwed on one of those looks to which Abby reached up and patted the side of his face. "How could I say no to this face?"

Hearing her say that made Carter, even in his rather worried state laugh. It was needed to relieve some of the built up tension that Carter had going. "GO on then and get out of here, before they find some reason to suck you into the ER vortex."

"Call me if anything changes." Abby said softly to him, "or if you need some company."

"You know that I will." Carter replied. He watched as she got ready to leave and headed down the hallway towards the elevators to get off the SICU floor.

Carter sighed now and walked down the other way to get some coffee. A short night of rest and now he was going to be sitting at the hospital again tonight. He walked back the way he had come taking in the sights of the old tile floor and sterile white walls. Nothing on this floor had changed and Carter didn't think that this floor would ever change. It was probably for the most part standard across the county.

This was the start of a very long waiting game. Pacing wasn't the best of ways to kill time. He kept walking until he found himself standing at the door to the OR observation deck. But now he found himself not wanting to go inside. That wasn't a stranger there on the table that was a friend. He wasn't there trying to reassure a family, in a way she was family. His hand went up to push the door open but he couldn't get his foot to move. That pause lasted for what felt like an eternity, but in all reality only a few seconds had passed.

He wanted to see how she was doing but at the same time he was scared of seeing something go horribly wrong and that was the part of the nasty reality they were in. The door even more slowly opened and with heavy steps as if he was standing in concrete shoes. Slowly he moved in and his eyes drifted down towards the center of the OR where he could see Anna laying there. Her eyes were closed and a breathing tube was once again down her throat. Several people were around the bed. Carter only recognized a few faces. Not that you could make out much of a face from behind the blue colored masks that the surgeons wore.

The atmosphere in the room appeared to be fairly relaxed for surgery. Usually the tension would have been a lot higher if something had been going wrong. Not that you could have seen the looks on their faces if something had been wrong. He just stood there now, just concentrating on her face and how peaceful she looked.

Carter watched the surgical team as they worked to save his friend. He had this horrible feeling in the pit of his stomach but he wasn't sure what was causing it. The time still seemed to be standing still but with everyone moving around he knew that it wasn't.

Someone looked up and made eye contact with Carter and a few moments later, someone that Carter assumed was Dubenko gave him thumbs up. Carter knew it would be a little while longer before he'd be able to see her in the recovery room. He would feel much better when he could touch her warm skin and see her breath again.

Slowly he made his way down from the observation area. He would have to find out what room they were going to be putting her back into. He still planned on taking her home and helping her out around her apartment so that she could go home again. Carter couldn't help but wonder if Max would take the time to show up for her. That's what preoccupied his mind. He reached the nurses station and with a little finagling got the information as to where he could find Anna.

With slow movements, his feet dragging along the cold tile floor he made his way down the hallway. The surgical resident was still in the room taking care of the post-op orders. She didn't look any worse for wear right at the moment as Carter patiently waited for the resident to finish before crossing the rest of the way into the room and sat down next to the head of the bed.

He reached down and carefully picked up her hand holding it ever so carefully as if she was made of porcelain and would break. Her hand was warm to the touch. A good sign as Carter brushed a stand of her hair back behind her ear. Smiling as he thought back to the first time that they had met something back then had made him decide that he wanted to be more than just friends. Those same feelings were coming back in seeing her lying there being so vulnerable and helpless in need of protection. Carter knew that he could do all of that.

There he sat as patient as he could have been. He wanted to watch her, to make sure that nothing else happened to her. Carter her held hand still softly in his as he watched Anna's eyes flutter a little now as she started to wake up from the medication that had pulled her under. Carter rubbed her hand still tenderly.

"Wake up for me Anna."

He heard her moan and move a little. She really was trying to come back to the land of the living. "Max."

That shocked Carter to hear. It almost cut him to the bone. He didn't think after all that he had heard her mutter his name. "No Anna." He said keeping his voice soft, "it's John."

Anna tried a couple more times to get her eyes open, "sleepy."

"Rest Anna, you had surgery again but you are going to be okay."

She softly nodded from behind those still closed eyes. So much on her mind but she didn't have the energy to form the words to express any of it right now.

"I'll be right here if you need me." Carter made sure that she was tucked in, warm and as comfortable as she could be given the circumstances. Carter would be true to those words too. She deserved to be taken care of and to have friends there who could be there when she needed someone.


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

Slowly over the next twenty-four hours Carter watched Anna's condition improve. His head rested against his hand now his eyes not leaving from watching her. There was more color in her cheeks but Anna was still pale. She looked more like herself but they had her still medicated so she would rest more comfortably.

"How is she doing?" Carter heard a voice from the doorway. He looked up to see Max standing there.

"She's doing fine Max." Carter's tone was rather flat with him. "She wouldn't want you here."

"They called so I assumed that she asked them." Max's arms were crossed over his chest as he came more into the room. He looked at Anna lying there. "What happened?"

"She was in an accident." Carter said the tone in his voice not changing. "You should go back to Philadelphia." Carter tried to keep the contempt out of his voice as he spoke. "She really didn't ask for you to be here. You'll just stress her out and that's not what she needs."

"Then she'll tell me to leave when she wakes up."

Carter didn't think that Max had it in him to be defiant like that towards anyone. His outward appearance while confident also was rather mild mannered yet snakes did tend to frequently shed their skins and be historically known as being defiant and deceptive both traits that Anna seemed to have been blinded from.

"Max," Carter rose from where he had been sitting, standing he was taller than the other doctor and hoped to have some kind of intimidation factor. "As a physician and a friend I am asking, no I am telling you to leave."

There was this almost awkward silence between the two men now as they nearly stared each other down into the ground. Carter having no idea why Max felt the need not to move, to stand his ground over his ex-wife and perhaps it was nothing more than guilt that had brought him back here.

"Carter," Max didn't raise his voice, he didn't gain any form of a defensive posture with Carter. "John, I'm here and I am staying until Anna says otherwise."

Carter wanted to throw him out of the hospital again. Feelings that he hadn't had since Max had sown up out of the blue and tore Anna from his life then. Carter quietly crossed the room standing mere inches from the other man now. "I didn't like you the first time that I met you and I still don't like you." Carter paused a moment, "but you were listed as her emergency contact and I have no ground to argue with you. When she wakes up and says for you to get out, believe me I will be more than happy to throw your ass out."

Now Carter couldn't believe that he was having this argument right here so he decided that due to them being in the hospital as well as on the SICU floor that this was not the best place to have a knock down. So rather than upset anyone further, Carter figured the best thing he could do would be to go and get some coffee even some air. He wouldn't go very far so that he could easily return when she woke up again to keep that promise. But he couldn't sit in that room with the desire to strangle Max growing too strong. While he was rather reluctant to leave Anna, he realized was a grown adult and for some reason Anna had decided to marry Max. Blind devotion and love was more than enough to make Carter sick to his stomach. He exited the room full well knowing when Anna was awake again; she would give the snake what he deserved. She deserved better than that and Carter knew it. He just hoped that the one person who needed to know it the most saw the same thing that he did.

From outside the closed door Carter kept peering inside. He didn't know why but he didn't think that Anna was safe in there with Max. If it had been anyone else Carter knew his emotions wouldn't feel as they did right now. Max most definitely had Carter riled up. Special, Anna was and always would be special to him. Their relationship might not have, the first time, been given the chance to bloom. Here and now things had an extreme chance to change. Carter could sense that someone was coming up behind him now.

"She's sleeping," he said without turning around, "Max," sarcasm filled his voice, hate and distaste, "is in there with her now."

"I see." The voice was soft and most definitely female as well as one that Carter knew.

"Abby called." The voice held concern as well as it probably should have. "I promised her that I would make sure you were okay."

"Very Abby-like," simple response but then he was still focused on Anna. "I'm fine really she doesn't need to worry." That was colder than Carter had intended it to be. But he just couldn't help himself.

"I can see that."

Carter just shook his head. "Neela," he was frustrated, "for all our sakes and Abby's best interest, tell her you saw me, talked to me, and I appeared to be just fine."

"We both know that's not true."

"But it will be as soon as that son of a bitch gets away from her." Carter knew that was probably as close to the truth right now as anyone was going to get with him. More importantly he didn't want to appear vulnerable to anyone. That could be traced to the number Abby followed by Kem had done to his heart not to mention his pride.

All the mistakes he felt he had made in those two relationships were still very fresh and very close to the surface. Some wounds left deep scars that one had to wonder if even time itself could heal. But Anna inflicting wounds like those never entered his thoughts. For now could something as fragile as she was hurt him? His friend appeared to him to need someone helping her out. Watching Anna through the window it appeared that she was starting to wake up now. He could see her eyes begin to flutter open. Instantly he could see the stress upon her face. Clearly she didn't appear happy that Max was in there with her. It took everything that Carter had not to burst into the room and drag Max out of there to ease some of Anna's anxiety.

Standing there time almost stopped or that was sure as hell how it felt. That line between being an insane friend and just a friend closer to being crossed unintentionally. Carter had never really gotten into a fight over a girlfriend, well that one time but she really wasn't a girlfriend. Anna's face showed she was certainly in distress.

From Carter's viewpoint he couldn't tell if she was in pain or not. Perhaps it could provide cover as for which to slip back into the room and at least to her not appear as if he was being an overbearing ass.

You could cut the tension in the room with a knife from the moment he opened the door. Anna's arms lay crossed over her chest. There were creases on her forehead from the stress that she was under. Her lips were pursed tight in a frown. It was almost enough to stop Carter in his tracks right there.

"Anna please."

Anna's eyes came up to lock with John's right as he walked in and then they went back down again. "It's too late." Her eye showed how tired and just how much pain she was really in both physically and emotionally. "I appreciate you showing up. Would you please just leave now?"

Max turned, "it's never too late."

"No you told me once before that it was too late and really we are too late. Please, just go. I'm tired and in pain." She really was both of those things, more pain that she would let anyone know.

"I'll leave." Max said moving towards the door, "but I promise you that it is never too late."

The two men exchanged icy glances. Each of them thinking that what was on their mind was what was best for Anna. Yet neither of them had taken the time to consider what Anna wanted or even what she might have needed.


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13:

Anna from behind her closed eyes could feel the pain seeping into her body. She felt that there were eyes on her. That feeling alone was enough to make her want to open her eyes. She wasn't sure how long she'd been asleep, all she knew was that her body still ached and her eyes didn't want to open up with ease. She fought to get them open as she softly moaned.

She could feel the touch of someone's hand on hers. There was a smell in the room that was familiar but yet one that she didn't remember being there when she went back to sleep. Her eyes opened all the way and the face that was beside her bed started to come into focus. There she was face to face now with her ex.

"Max." Her voice was soft and the pain radiated through it. She didn't know why he of all people would be there.

"Hello Anna." There was something in the tone that he used with her that just didn't sit well with her right now. Surely he wasn't there to belittle her when she was lying there defenseless.

"Why are you here?" She let her eyes shut for just a moment thinking that when she opened them again she'd find out that she was just dreaming.

"The hospital called me and told me you'd been in an accident and that I should get here." He said, "there for a moment I thought that I'd find you on your death bed."

"I'm sorry that I have disappointed you." Anna said. When she heard him speaking she knew that she wasn't dreaming that he'd really come all the way from Philadelphia again. "I'm not anywhere near dying no matter how much you wish for it."

"Now, now dear," she felt him pat her hand, "that's not something that you should be saying." He leaned in and put a very fake kiss on her cheek. "I wouldn't want anything like that to happen to you."

"Save it for the judge and jury." Anna replied, "I know that you don't give rats damn about me unless there's something in it for you."

"Oh now that hurts. How you show so little disregard for my feelings when I dropped everything to rush to your side."

She rolled her eyes when he said that. "I'm not buying it Max." She really wasn't in the mood for this. She didn't know why he had even bothered. Surely he had something more important to be doing than this.

"Not buying what Anna." He asked. "That I do have a heart somewhere in my ice cold chest. That I am something other than the monster you have painted in your mind?"

"You are incapable of loving someone Max. I didn't have to paint a monster, you created the one that you are without my help." Anna said, "what is it that you are getting out of this trip here? Did you think that you would be collecting on an insurance policy perhaps, or maybe you thought you would find me in a vegetative state and be the wounded victim and pull the plug on me?"

"My, I see that being injured has brought out the best in you today." Max said. "You always were a feisty patient. But then I believe that playing the part of the wounded bitch always suited you better."

"Go to hell." She said back to him her tone cold as ice matching the feeling in the air right now. There was no love loss between the two of them and getting divorced from Max had been one of the smartest moves Anna had made in a long time. She just wished that she would have seen it sooner and saved herself a lot of heartache in the process.

"You will be there first my dear." He said, "you are the most accident prone woman I know. It appears to me that you have pissed off the karma gods in more than just this lifetime."

"I don't know why you even bothered coming. What do you get this sick thrill out of tormenting me like this?" She asked. She never thought Max liked poor and defenseless women, but then those were the ones that he could easily mold to fit his many moods and be easily forgiven by. Anna hadn't been that kind of woman. Strong and independent she could and often did stand on her own too feet. And she had been working hard on starting over again in Chicago with nothing more than the clothes on her back. She didn't want anything from him and especially not support. She had friends that she could get that from. "You need to find a hobby, was golf not enough for you."

"Oh no, Brenda and I have a great time golfing." He said. "She's settled into life in Philadelphia much better than you seemed to. She doesn't complain about all the traveling I do, or throw herself into her work to avoid me. I have no complaints."

"Then why?" Anna knew the answer to that question, not that she needed to hear why he was there. She knew that she didn't want him there with her and was upset that they had called him to begin with. But in the end that was her fault for not getting her emergency contact list updated when she should have.

"Like I said the hospital called and I had to come." He said. "It would have looked very bad, been a bad reflection of my character if I didn't come and at least see for myself that you were alive. People would have began to ask questions, not that I really think that other people's opinions matter that much."

"Just go then. As you can see I don't need you here. I really don't want you here. You've wasted your time in coming to see me considering most everyone knows that I am no longer your wife. That I left you, not the other way around. See I'm not the only one who knows you are a player and a liar." Anna said. " But that in the end really doesn't matter because it's over, you won, you have everything that I could have given you. I signed the papers without fighting you. You got the house, the car, what more could you want from me. I ended it like I knew it needed to be ended."

"It's never over Anna." He said. "You have something that belongs to me, I don't know where but I know. I won't let you get away with it. Your strong sense of denial just always amazes me. But then you always were a very strong self-centered woman."

"I don't know what you are talking about Max." Anna answered. "but I'm not in denial over anything. I've accepted, long accepted the fact that I made a dreadful mistake in thinking you were the person I should have married."

"You say that but no one believes you Anna." He was inches away from her face now. "You need to come clean with the truth, see I would hate for something to happen to you and you carry you lie with you."

"You are insane." She said, "and you need to give up this obsession. It makes you look crazy Max, your the one in denial not me. You refuse to accept the truth no matter how many people tell it to you."

"You have no right, you know that don't you." He was upset with her, they had, had this argument one too many times. "How can you live with yourself doing this to her.. doing this to me."

"She's dead Max." Anna said, "you know that as well as I do. Isabelle isn't here, she never was. You've been told that, it was shown to you. What more do you need to accept the fact that you just weren't there when it happened, and that was your fault not mine."

"I don't know how you did it, but I know you have her." He said. "How many people did you pay off to be able to do this Anna? Even you couldn't have enough money to keep everyone who would have known quiet. It's just a matter of time before it all comes out. You can't lie forever."

"You are imagining things." Anna said, "I'm telling you right now for the last time, there is no baby, you do not have a daughter. The baby was still born while you were in Phoenix." She really wished he would just accept that fact and move on with his life, more importantly just stay out of hers. It would make her life much more easy. "You put your trip above everything else, you left me alone, stressed out, I did everything that I could but in the end, if anyone is to blame it's you. You brought this on yourself. Do us all a favor and leave me alone, go back to Philadelphia to your precious perfect Brenda and have a baby with her. I'm not yours anymore, you have no claim upon my life, no right to be here in this room. So haul your ass out before I call security."

"Anna, please," she heard him stop as she looked up to see Carter going into the room. She had her arms crossed over her chest now. That was the first time that she'd ever seen Max shut up so fast in her entire life. Probably because he knew that with Carter there she would call security and have him throw out of the hospital, in the end more embarrassment than what he would want. While Max seemed to thrive on attention at times, he preferred to stay out of the negative spotlight.

Carter unaware of having done so had saved her from having to have this conversation anymore with Max. She knew why Max couldn't let this go, but she wasn't about to let him win this one. "Too late," she said feeling now just how tired she was and how much pain she really was in. Carter's timing was a complete and total savior for her and she wished that she could show him just how much she appreciated it. Max was wearing on her last nerve. This insistence upon being right no matter what anyone told him never seemed to end. Sure he probably had his reasons but in her eyes none of them were valid. She'd never let on to them being valid. She had people who would protect her with everything that they had in them, but when she was in Chicago like she was right now, a few hundred miles away from her closest family members. Having seven brothers had come in handy.

She had learned to play this part very well. He was emotionally abusive to her, he had always been that way. At first she had just been to blind to see what he was doing to her, but that's what happened when you looked at someone when you were in love with them. When she first came back to Philadelphia things really did appear to be better than they had been in a long time. That's why she decided it would be okay to give him another chance at a relationship with her. But after they got married things took a turn for the worse and after a year or so Anna really did see that things weren't what they appeared to be. He never could get his drug problem under control. Sure he could do it for a little while, but never fully. He would alway slip back into the same patterns that he was used to. That just appeared to make life much easier for him, and hell on earth at times for her. He had managed to find some way to blame it all on her, but she knew what went on when he took those business trips. They had been always the same for the last four years. "I appreciate you showing up, but it's too late, would you please just go now?"

Max turned, "it's never too late."

Anna knew she was going to have to be careful still. Even though they lived in two different cities she was never going to be safe. She would take the truth to her grave with her if that's what it took to keep him away. "No you told me once before that it was too late and really it is too late. Please just go, I'm tired and in pain. You have a life and a wife to return to in Philadelphia Max, you don't need to be here, you're not wanted here."

She watched him leave the room passing by Carter. She was just tired. All she could do was sink down a little more into the bed when Max left the room. She reached over for the button that controlled her PCA machine. She pushed it knowing that in a few short moments she would be getting some relief from the pain that had really began to course through her body.

"Are you okay?" Carter finally asked once they were the only two in the room.

Anna fought the urge to roll her eyes at Carter when he asked that, "I will be okay. I'm just hurting right now that's all." She was just happy that Max had appeared to leave, but there was still that fear inside her that this wasn't going to be the last time that she saw him. That he would appear the moment she let her guard down and try to live a normal life. It was never going to be normal for her again. Too much had happened to her for that to be the case.

Carter nodded. "Do you want me to see if we can get you a morphine booster?"

Anna shook her head. "No I'll be okay. I just need to give the morphine a few minutes to kick in and actually work." She knew it would be a matter of a few moments before she would find some relief from the pain of the car accident but she would never feel safe and secure. More importantly she would never fully be hidden away from the pain that Max had inflicted upon her. Those memories were always going to be there for her and she knew in her heart there was no drug in this hospital that could ever ease that pain.


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter 14

"Anna, are you sure that you are alright?" Carter asked her again. Seeing Max with her had probably upset him more than it had her, but she was definitely different acting now that he had left the room. He knew she was hurting, but there was more to it than that. Her body language was speaking volumes that anyone could have picked up on if they knew anything about her.

"I need him to leave and go back to Philadelphia. I can't have him in Chicago." There was panic in Anna's voice as she spoke. She tried to hide it, but there was no way that she could keep it all from coming through. "I'm not at home. Oh please dear god, don't let him go by the apartment." That was her biggest fear right now and there wasn't a damn thing that she could do about it. Now while she was stuck in the hospital everything she'd worked so hard was right there in the open if someone went looking. She was extremely uncomfortable with that fact.

"What's going on Anna?" Carter asked looking her point blank in the eye. He was certain now that there was something here that he was missing, something was going on that she hadn't told him about and he really needed to know what that was so that he could do what he could to help her. There wasn't much that Carter could do if she didn't let him know about it.

"It's nothing Carter." Anna said rather quickly, "there's nothing going on other than I don't want my ex hanging around me, hovering over me like he gives a damn about me." She knew that she shouldn't have said what she did but she couldn't help but panic right now. Max had left and she was losing it fast. There were so many what-if hanging over her head. She knew in her heart she couldn't just sit there and let something happen, she had some power and she needed to use it to keep the worse case from happening.

"Okay." Carter said not fully believing her. Her actions were telling him that there was something more to all of this than what met the eye. But pushing her to talk right now probably was not something that he should do. There were lines all over her face showing the stress that she was feeling.

"Is Luka or Abby around the hospital?" Anna knew that she needed to know if he'd been by there already while she had been sleeping. Mia was bright and didn't open the door for just anyone when Anna wasn't there, and it wasn't as if she went a lot of places during the day anyway. All Anna could do was pray at this point in time and wish for the best while at the same time fearing the worst.

Now he thought that was an odd question to ask. "I don't know." Carter answered. She was acting awfully strange for nothing to be going on. Even Carter couldn't miss that she was clearly worried about something.

"Could you find out please?" Anna's eyes were almost begging him now. There was a sense of increasing urgency to the tone of her voice. She knew she needed to calm down, he'd start asking her questions she didn't want to answer if she didn't. But there was something inside of her that didn't want to drop this either. Luka knew about everything and he would know if Max had gone by her apartment, they would have seen him at the building.

"Yeah I can find out for you." Carter said, he could easily do that for her although he didn't know why he couldn't do whatever it was that she needed done. Surely if she really needed something he could have done it for her. But he wasn't going to argue with her, even though he really wanted to.

She closed her eyes, "thank you John. I really need to talk to Luka, please it's very important. He lives right above me, and I forgot something at the apartment."

Carter didn't understand at all but he wasn't going to ask just right now and he was completely dumbfounded by her. He'd find Luka for her and then work on getting the answers that he thought he needed. "I'll be right back." Granted he really could have gone to the apartment for her and gotten it but on the other hand maybe Anna just didn't want to be left alone in there right now and he couldn't blame her for that either. She did live 20 minutes away, so if he did leave he'd be gone for nearly an hour and anything could happen in an hour.

He walked out of her room and caught the elevator down to the ER. If Luka was in the hospital that is where he would either find him or Abby who would know where he was. He got off the elevator and started to make his way towards the admit desk. That's where he saw the tall Croatian doctor running over the board with the shift that was coming on.

He stood there waiting for Luka to finish the rounds before approaching him. "Are you off?"

Luka looked at Carter, "yeah I'm just finishing up why?"

"Anna wants to see you." Carter said, "she asked me to come down here and find you. Max just left and she's pretty upset. Says she left something at the apartment, but I'm pretty sure that was just an excuse. But I told her I'd come and get you so here I am."

Luka started to walk back now the way that Carter had just come from to catch the next elevator up to the SICU. "Is she, other than upset, okay?" He knew when Carter said left something at the apartment what she meant. He'd checked on right before he had come to work and everything with that was okay. He just needed to let Anna know that he had thought about it and had it all worked out.

"I think so." Carter said, "they were talking about releasing her here soon. I thought that she might like me to take her back to her apartment. Stay with her a couple of days until she's back up on her feet. I know that there's nothing like being at home to recover."

Luka looked at him rather oddly. Now it wasn't that Anna wasn't going to want the help or need the help but he didn't know if Anna would take help from someone other than him or Abby. "You might want to talk to her before you go to gun ho on that one John."

"Why might that be Luka?" It seemed that Luka was pretty privy to more of Anna's life than Carter had known. Perhaps Carter was feeling a little bit of jealousy there.

"She's just really independent that's all." Luka said trying not to let too much slip out. "She might be more comfortable with Abby and I helping her out right now that's all. Since we live right there and all it would be easy for one of us to be down there with her and still be able to give her some space being just up the stairs."

They got onto the elevator and took the short ride up to the SICU. Neither of them having much more to say as Carter was still digesting what Luka had said to him, surely Anna wouldn't be that uncomfortable with him helping her out rather than burdening a pregnant Abby right now who probably had more important things on her plate. It wasn't that Anna wasn't important to them.

"Hey there Blondie," Luka said as he crossed into Anna's room. He could see that she was worried when he crossed in.

"Hi," she said in a soft voice looking once at Carter and then at Luka, "I need to know is Mia in Chicago?"

"No Anna she's not." Luka said as he watched some of the worry drain off Anna's face, "she's in Seattle." He was sure that when he said Seattle Anna would know who she was with. "Mia thought that seeing some of the Northwest would be good for her."

Anna let out a sigh of relief hearing that. "That's good with Max showing up here I was worried about her."

"I know you were." Luka said, glad that he had been able to ease some of her anxiety. It had been last minute but he'd managed to get Mia out of Chicago hopefully under Max's nose, since the two men really didn't know each other. Doug and Carol were more than happy to help out even though it had been short notice. About an hour ago Carol had called to say that they had arrived so that Anna wouldn't have to worry as much. "Carol said you could call when you wanted, that Mia landed about an hour ago."

"Who is Mia?" Carter looked at both Luka and Anna confused a little bit more. Carter didn't know why Anna would be so worked up about this.

Anna looked a Luka; you could see on her face that she was uneasy about telling Carter anything. Anna knew that the fewer people knew that the easier it would be to keep it secret. That and she was not so sure how Carter would react if she told him who Mia was. Luka reached over and put his hand on Anna's arm.

"It's okay. Carter you know you can trust." He said in a reassuring voice, he knew he needed to keep her at ease, "I trust him with my life. I know you know him as well as I do and he's to be trusted."

Anna looked down for a minute, "it's not that I don't trust John." She said honestly speaking for the first time all day. "I just don't want there to be a chance that it's found out. The fewer people who know the better I know she'll be. The easier it will all be. Not that this is ever going to be easy, for anyone involved."

"You need to let him in Anna." Luka said keeping his voice soft. Reassurance was what his friend needed right now. She had to make some tough choices in the past and the consequences of those decisions were hard for her to live with, harder even to keep. "You know you can't hide this forever and you need all the friends that you can get to help you with this. She's safe in Seattle but you know you don't want her to stay there forever. We called it pretty close this time. You are lucky that he didn't stop by your apartment without warning. There's going to come a day when he just shows up without warning and we might not be as lucky as we were this time."

She knew what Luka was saying was right and that he was speaking the truth. She knew that she needed to let Carter know what was going on if for no other reason than he might be able to help her and in helping her would protect what she held dear. But there was still that fear that he wouldn't understand why she had done what she'd done. Afraid that he would see her as vindictive and heartless but Anna wasn't either of those. She tried to escape an emotionally abusive relationship within the parameters of the law, but they had let her down and she suffered even worse at the hands of her husband. Emotional abuse was hard to prove, hitting at least left bruises on her body but she was too afraid to come forward again at that point in her life.

"Mia is my nanny." Anna slowly started to speak as she brought her eyes up to look at John, "she takes care of my daughter Isabelle." Anna knew she needed to say more, "she's the reason that Max keeps just showing up here in Chicago. He thinks that he'll catch me with my guard down. I'm trying to protect her from him." Anna was speaking faster now trying to defend her actions. "We told him she died at birth to keep him from hurting her. He would too. He didn't want children and I got pregnant. He's not good for her, not with all his problems. He'd end up screwing her over just like he does everyone else. I couldn't let him treat her the way that he was treating me." There were tears in her eyes. The scars that her ex-husband had left on her were deep and far from healed.

"It's okay Anna. Of course you couldn't let him hurt her." Carter said reaching out and wiping the tear that had fallen down her cheek away. "I can understand I know how a parent can love a child so much that they want nothing to do but protect them. What you have, it's not something Max deserves." How anyone could inflict pain upon a child or even someone with as soft a heart as Anna was beyond him. But you could see the fear in her eyes, you could tell that what she was feeling was real to her. No one deserved to be hurt by someone who claimed to love them, and when it was intentional it was even more uncalled for.

Anna nodded as she closed her eyes. None of this was easy; her life was so complicated that she thought she'd never be able to just raise her daughter in peace. Max would end up finding her no matter where she went. It was all just a matter of time before he did find out, someone would slip up and he'd find Isabelle and he'd take everything good in Anna's life away. He wasn't one to make idol threats. She knew he would carry this one out if it was the last thing that he did to her.

"How old is she Anna?" Carter asked. He would do what he could to help her, but right now with Mia and Isabelle in Seattle perhaps they would all be okay.

"She's seven months old." Anna said softly as she tried to keep from crying anymore than she already had.

His friend had been keeping this child a secret for a long time. It had to be hard on her. It didn't matter to Carter; he'd do what he could for them. "We'll keep her safe Anna. I promise." That was one promise that Carter intended to keep. He didn't know how he'd do it but there had to be some way to keep this child away from Max, legally at that too so that his friend didn't have to live in this kind of fear. She had so much worry written upon her face that it pulled at his heart.

"I know John. Max can't find out. He just can't." Anna didn't know how much longer she'd be able to keep this up. It was wearing on her and she knew that it wasn't the way that Isabelle should be raised, but right now it was her only option. She wished that there was another way, something that she hadn't thought of. The only thing that she was certain of, was that she was running out of time and running out of places to hide.

"Don't worry so much Anna." Carter said. "Luka, Abby, you and I will come up with something so that you don't have to keep living in hiding anymore. I'm sure that there's something that can be done. Let me worry about it right now, you rest and recover."

Anna looked down; she wished so much for that to be true. Max was Isabelle's father and she couldn't change that no matter how much she wanted to. "I don't know John." She said. "I can wish all I want in the world but that doesn't change biology."

"No it doesn't." Carter said putting his hand under her chin bringing her eyes up to look at his. "Don't worry about this right now. What we need to focus on is getting you better, getting you home and then we'll come up with something." He stood up from where he had been on the edge of her bed, "now doctor's orders." He pulled the blankets up around her, "I want you to get some sleep while I find out how soon we can break you free." He kissed the top of her head. "She's safe with Doug and Carol in Seattle. How you thought of that one is beyond me."

"It was Luka and Abby's idea." Anna said softly doing what he asked of her.

"Abby is resourceful when she wants to be. Sleep while you can Anna," he said softly now as he pulled back away from her, "tomorrow is another day and we'll get this in the end."

Anna closed her eyes and let the medication do it's job, relaxing the best that she could. Both men watched her drift back to sleep before either one of them thought about leaving. They both knew that there had to be something that they could do to help her out. Between the two of them surely Carter and Luka could come up with a plan to bring Anna and Isabella back into the world and no longer in hiding.


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter 15

_Earlier in the day…._

Abby and Luka sat in the apartment. She was snuggled up against his chest taking in some quiet time. A rare at home moment for the two of them and it was something that Abby looked forward to when she could get it. They seemed to be getting further and further apart and she knew soon she'd be staying at home with their child and he'd be gone every day at the hospital.

"I'm worried." She said softly from her spot on his chest.

"What are you worried about?" Luka asked as he kissed the top of her head, his hands resting around her waist, secretly hoping to feel the baby move. "You can talk to be about anything Abby, you know that."

Abby shook her head. She laughed softly momentarily getting distracted feeling his hands move a little, "are you chasing the baby?" She moved her head just enough to look up at him.

"No," he grinned a little more, "why would I do that?" He couldn't lie all that well to her. But she had successfully for the moment changed the conversation away from what might have been bothering her.

"Because you spend more time kissing and talking to my belly than anyone else I know." She responded.

"There is someone else that has been doing that?" He asked giving her a rather concerned look, even though he was just teasing her.

"You know what I mean." She said poking him rather playfully, "you might as well give up. The baby knows your home and has decided to take a nap."

"How do you know?" He asked, "are you two in cahoots?"

"Oh heavens yes, you know that I told the baby too." She gave him her evil grin. Even though she knew he knew she was just playing with him.

"I see. Now stop changing the subject." Luka looked at her trying to gently get her back on what they had started to talk about.

"Who me, would I do that?" Her eyes radiating her innocence.

"Yes, you are a professional at it." Luka said, "what are you worried about? I believe that was what we were taking about." It was so easy for him to focus on Abby and the baby when he needed to and right now there were no other distractions to take him away from the two of them.

"Anna and Isabelle," she said answering his question. She couldn't help but sigh, as she thought about it a little more. "Neela called Max. She didn't get a hold of him but she left a message. What is going to happen if he shows up while Anna's out of it?"

"Mia's downstairs in the apartment isn't she?" Luka asked. He knew that Abby tended to worry about things and this was no exception. They both had become close to their friend that lived downstairs and worked with them.

"Yeah I was down there earlier making sure that they didn't need anything. That and I like spending time with Isabelle." Abby said softly. "Getting used to a baby and all since ours will be here soon."

"I don't know." Luka said, "I don't know if Max knows where Anna is staying."

"I think he does." Abby said, "Anna's mentioned it before. Part of the reason Mia and Isabelle don't go out that much. I mean even though there's several apartments here, she's really cautious."

"Do you blame her?" Luka asked.

"Not really. I mean I don't know Max. I never met him, but I don't think that I want to. She's had a hard time with everything, the last time that Max dropped by he said some pretty mean things to her." Abby said, "I can see why she doesn't want him around the baby."

"Yeah she's told me a little about it. Her reasons seem valid. Whether what she is doing is right or wrong, I respect her decision."

Abby looked up at him, "you have a pretty big heart you know that don't you." She leaned up a little so she could give him a kiss on the cheek just as the baby kicked.

Abby watched as Luka's eyes lit up and it made her smile. She loved how the baby made him so excited. It had been a hard decision to make but in the end she knew she'd made the right one. They both deserved this little bit of happiness. She loved him and she knew that he loved her and their unborn child.

"I can't imagine someone not wanting a child." Luka said with some sadness in his voice. "They truly are gifts from god to be cherished."

"They are." Abby said she knew where that sadness came from. How hard it had been on him to lose his own children like he had. "But there are some people in the world who are never meant to be parents…" She thought about her own family for a moment, "even if they want it."

Luka kissed the top of her head. He could read the hidden meaning in what she was saying and he understood more than that he knew that there was nothing to be said about it. A wise man knew when to keep his mouth shut about certain things. He would not say anything about the woman who was someday hopefully going to be his mother-in-law. "Anna knows that too." He changed the focus away from what they had been talking about to what they had started the entire conversation about. "She and Isabelle need all the support that they can get from us right now. I know you have a lot going on with getting ready for our baby and your work schedule, I didn't want to put any additional stress on you."

"With Anna in the hospital though and the thought of Max poking around, I don't want Mia, more importantly Isabelle exposed." Abby said. "We should do something Luka, we're her friends. If we can't help her then who can? There's not a lot of people that she has to turn too right now."

"I thought about having her come up here, but there really isn't enough room right now with the two of us. It would work for a little while but not for long. If Max did come by the apartment, there's that chance that he would still see her." Luka let out a long sigh, "I would hate for Mia to have to be worried all the time and we don't know how long Anna's going to be in the hospital."

"Is there anyone else that she trusts, who might also know about Isabelle?" Abby asked not sure just how much Anna had told Luka about the situation. "Somewhere Mia and the baby could go until Anna's out of the hospital and we know for sure that Max isn't going to be poking his nose around."

Luka just held onto her with the arm that was around Abby. He was honestly thinking about what they could do and where if there was such a place. Anna hadn't mentioned many people when they talked, and if Luka hadn't seen her with Isabelle one night after work odds are that even he wouldn't know about the baby. Anna didn't broadcast that she was a mother and looking at her you wouldn't have known that she had an infant daughter that she was trying so desperately to protect.

The silence went on longer than Abby thought it would, "there isn't anyone Luka?"

Luka looked down at her as he thought back to all the conversations that he and Anna had, had. There really weren't any names sticking out at him. "I don't know Abby, honestly." He thought for another couple of minutes back to a conversation that he and Anna had. "Wait there's someone." He was trying to think of the name that had been dropped. "Ross, something or other," Luka was trying really hard to come up with what it had been. "He worked here several years ago. Anna kept in touch with him; they kept bumping into each other at pediatric conferences."

Luka knew the man's name he had just tuned that part out when Anna started talking about him and Carol. He loved seeing pictures of Carol's daughters that Anna had. They had been little the last time that he had seen them. It had been right before Carol had taken off for Seattle.

Abby just shrugged her shoulders the name didn't seem all that familiar to him, "that must have been before I started working at County."

"Doug." Luka finally remembered the man's name. "I could call him. I haven't talked to Carol in years. She and Doug might be able to help Anna. And they are over on the west coast. Max would have a hard time finding them that way." It was a long shot right now but it was something. "You should go lay down before you have to go into work. I'll see what I can work out." He pulled his arm away from her now but not before leaning in to give her a soft kiss.

Abby shook her head, "yeah I probably should." She wasn't going to argue with him about taking a nap. She was pretty tired right now anyway. It was cute how he seemed to look out for her so much. "Let me know if you need any help." She stretched out on the couch as he got up.

"No worries." He said laughing as he watched her stretch the moment he got up. He reached down and pulled the blanket off the back of the couch covering her up so that she could sleep. He'd take care of what needed to be taken care of. Surely he could pull this one off and no one would have to worry about anything for awhile.


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter 16**

_Two Days later…._

"John, I really want to get out of here." There was almost a whiney tone to Anna's voice as she had been begging and pleading with everyone who would take two seconds to listen to her today. "I'm fine. Sore, tired, but really I'm tying up a bed that could be used by a sick person."

"Anna it's just a couple more…" John got cut of by her.

"Days that I don't need to be here for," she said finishing his sentence for him knowing where he was going with it. She was restless and really wanting nothing more than to go home right now.

"It won't kill you to stay here for two more days." He said giving her that look that told her she was pushing it with him right now. His patience seemed to be a little shorter today, not because of her but because he'd just gotten off a long shift with very little sleep.

Anna really thought about dropping it with John but she'd been doing nothing but lying in that bed driving her insane. He was almost in a way her last ditch effort to try and get out of there, not an escape but just her really wanting the comforts of home. "You try laying up here for…"

It was John's turn to cut her off, "you might not like it but I did it and you can do it too young lady." Nothing like being able to speak from personal experience but he did know just how much she wanted to be in her own bed with her own things, more than anyone in that hospital knew. He knew his tone was rather firm with her, but sometimes with the hardheaded you had to be hardheaded right back.

"There's no reason to keep me here anymore." She didn't see herself as the invalid that everyone else seemed to see when they looked at her, that was just frustrating her more and more with every passing day. She didn't mean to take it out on John, "I'm eating, drinking, walking and doing everything else that I am supposed to be doing. I'm not even complaining when I have to do PT anymore. John, I'm not asking to go back to work." She knew she was pushing her luck with all of her protesting but she really was. "Even Neela said that I was good enough to go home." She figured throwing that in there wasn't going to hurt her cause and perhaps might help it.

"Home with someone to help you," John ever so lovingly pointed out and reminded her. "I do believe that Neela added conditions to that release when she told you about it. And that person would be?"

"Me of course," she replied rather quickly. Anna didn't have all that many friends in Chicago and certainly none that she could convince to come and live with her for a few days. Well she hadn't tried to convince John yet, but the thought was there in her mind. She just didn't think that he'd be all that open to the thought of having to stay with her. She wasn't sure how open she was with that. Having to be dependent upon someone was not something that she was good with.

"You can't stay alone, you know that." He pointed out once again, beginning to feel as if he was a broken record. "You can barely walk; you've got to have someone help with just about everything still. Is there anything else that I should be pointing out to you that you can't do right now, to prove my point."

"Do you think you could stop reminding me of that? And for the record, I can too walk. Just not very far very fast," Anna pointed right back at him.

"And what if there was an emergency, a fire or something and you needed to get out?"

She scowled at him now, "I could do it. I'd find a way." She could be stubborn at times and right now she knew that was what she was, no she was more obstinate right now than anything else. "John, please." She looked at him, "I want to be able to sleep in my own bed. Not to mention I'd be a lot more comfortable there."

John knew why she wanted out of there so badly, and he honestly couldn't say that he blamed her one little bit. If he had been in that position he probably would have felt the same way. "I know that you miss Isabelle." John said, "But right now you can't be home alone, and even if you could be there with Isabelle and Mia, Mia wouldn't be able to take care of both of you. You know that Anna."

Now it wasn't that John didn't want her to be able to go home. He just didn't want to have to worry about all the things that could go wrong. Her bringing Isabelle back from Seattle would add even more stress to her. At least right now she didn't have to necessarily worry about Max finding Mia and Isabelle and with them in Seattle there was no way for him to tie the two to Anna in all reality. Not that some no-good sob like Max couldn't find the way to do it. Carter would never fully be able to hide the fact that there was no love loss between him and Max. He didn't like him when he first met him and now he just really flat out hated the guy.

"Well just because I know it, doesn't mean I like it." She stuttered out now trying to break that gap of silence that had seemed to fill the room for a moment. It seemed as if she had found someone who was just as stubborn as she was if not more so. "Abby and Luka are right upstairs if I need something."

She was trying to save something, just what she wasn't sure anymore. The battle with him almost seemed to be a lost cause but yet it was a cause that she didn't want to give up. Chalk it up to foolish pride on some level but she just really wanted to go home and was reaching a near state of desperation.

"Anna you are aware that you are fighting a losing battle with me right?" John asked. Reading her face was a little harder to do, not that he'd ever managed to actually get to the point where he could. There however were some emotions that Anna wore rather up front and other's she could hide with the best of them. Unlike Carter who knew he was easy to read for the most part not the type of person to hide any emotion, it just wasn't in him to be like that.

"It's beginning to appear that way." She said as she sank down into the bed a little bit more. There was no convincing him that she'd be better at home than she was here.

He seemed to be worried and concerned about her. She couldn't blame him there; after all it seemed as if they were still friends like they had been before she rather suddenly took off. But then when she first came to Chicago, it was only temporary, everyone knew that. Or so Anna thought that everyone knew she had plans to sometime return to Philadelphia to work at CHOP as a physician.

When she left though it was almost as if she'd caught Carter completely off guard with her plans. While she had no plans on returning with Max, those were rather spur of the moment and in hindsight pretty bad when she looked back on it. "You could come and stay with me." Her voice was very soft as she said it. Hell no was the words that were reverberating in her head now.

"What?" Carter said not fully hearing what she had whispered there at the end. It sounded like she wanted him to stay with her. Now granted he'd be more than willing to help her out, thinking too it would give him and her chance to talk about everything a little more and try to come to a solution that would get her out of hiding.

Anna sighed. "Would you come and stay at the apartment with me?" She asked again, this time a little louder but the same fear was stuck in her head. They had started to grow close to one anther when she first was in Chicago, but the Max reappeared and Anna was sucked into that vortex again and their relationship was cut short by an old lover. Sad thing was that John had warned her and she'd failed to listen and hadn't seen the signs until it were all too late. "Please."

"Don't look so worried." John said seeing that look on her face, "are you that afraid that I am going to tell you no."

"Not no," Anna said looking up at him from where she was, "more of a hell no."

Hearing her say that made Carter laugh. "Well I'm not going to tell you that. I volunteered to do it awhile ago when I was talking with Luka." And he was surprised when he got a small smile from Anna.

"I see. So you two were making plans and just not letting me in on them?" She was shocked that he'd volunteered to be the one to come and stay with her. She thought he'd be the last person on earth who would be willing to give up his time like that. But then other the other hand, that was the same Carter she remembered, the one who would go that extra mile for someone just because he could.

"I wouldn't say that, I just brought it up and we talked about it for about two seconds and that was the end of it. I wouldn't mind helping you out."

"I'm glad to hear that…" she paused for just a moment there, "I think."

"What do you mean you think? There should be no thinking involved in that." Carter crossed his arms over his chest.

She looked at him, "no not like that." She had this feeling that she was going to have to explain this one now whether she wanted to or not. There was a little between them history wise, but to her it wasn't much. "I just didn't know if that was something that you'd want to do and well the I think part, it's more of one of those I don't know for sure if staying with another doctor is going to be such a good idea."

"Even if staying with another doctor is your only ticket out of here sooner rather than later? I know that if you are by yourself they are going to want you to stay for at least another two maybe three days."

"No if staying with you is my other option rather than staying here…" she paused for a minute thinking before she actually spoke for she really didn't want something to come out the wrong way "then I'd rather take that option and be with a friend at home than here. Although lately I have been surrounded by friends here too."

"You have a few more than you thought you did." He smiled for her. "Tell you what, don't pack your bags just yet, but I'll see what I can do about getting you released here in a little bit. I might have some clout here but even getting you discharged is going to take a few minutes."

"Ah, here I thought you were superman and could blink your eyes and set me free." She joked with him. She had to do something that would ease some of the tension that she was feeling in the room.

"Oh I am far from that." He said as he moved to head towards the door now to go and see about getting those much wanted papers of hers. "But I can probably safely promise that you will be home on your own couch by dinner time."

"Ah you know that is seven hours." She said with a softer smile. "I hope it doesn't take that long to get me set free from here."

"You never can tell with this place." He said as his hand reached for the door to make his exit. "But considering you are taking up a bed that could be occupied by the many that flood the ER on a daily basis it might not take me that long."

"I won't pack my bags completely." She said smiling as she saw him moving through the door now to leave, "but I'm going to start packing them knowing that eventually I am going to be able to leave."

"I'll be back as soon as I can." As he said that Anna watched John slip completely out the door.

What she really wanted was to be able to have Isabelle and Mia come back to Chicago, but it didn't seem that it was all that feasible with the way that she was feeling. That and she was still afraid that Max might be lurking around somewhere and her not know it. She wanted to protect her daughter from everything that she had gone through with Max. She never thought that Max was capable of hurting a child, but she didn't want to give him the chance.


End file.
